Pasts Conflict
by JaceSienna98
Summary: When Ema came to them looking flustered and apologizing for keeping something from them, the last thing they expected was that she had FOUR siblings. Unfortunately, their pasts have a lot more to them than just normal childhoods. Now they have to overcome their pasts before they come back to bite them. DISCLAIMER: I do not own Brother's Conflict.
1. Chapter 1 Meet the Hinatas

**PLEASE READ!**

 **I feel obligated to warn you that this fic will touch on some sensitive subjects later on. I can't go into further detail without spoiling things, so I'll give other warnings later on. That's all.**

 **Enjoy!**

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Chapter 1 Meet the Hinata Siblings

Almost all of the Asahina brothers were sitting on the couches in the living room, all curious about what the extremely nervous and _standing_ , Ema was going to tell them.

"Gomenasai!" Ema apologized and bowed.

"Eh?!" Yusuke exclaimed.

"Ema, whatever it is, you don't have to apologize." Masaomi said.

"Just calm down and tell us what this is about." Ukyo said.

"That's right, imotou-chan." Kaname winked.

Ema straightened and said nervously- although slightly less, "Gomen, really. There's something I forgot to inform you all of." They all relaxed a little at her words, sure it was nothing big and Ema was just being her sweet, concerned self.

"Oh is that all?" Ukyo heaved a sigh of relief.

"What a bother." Fuuto sighed.

"That's alright Onee-chan!" Wataru cheered.

"So what is it?" Masaomi asked, drawing them all back away from their relief and to the reason Ema was standing before them with them all- excluding Natsume, Iori, and Subaru- sitting together in the lobby on the first floor.

"Well…" Ema hesitated, biting her lip, but finally blurted, "I have four siblings."

There was a short pause, before a collective, "EEEEEHH!?"

After everyone calmed down a bit , Ukyo was the one to speak, "I imagine there is a reason that you're telling us this now." Ema shifted nervously.

"Well...they've been off in Europe and America on business or studying...and now they're coming to live here."

"What!?"

"Seriously?!"

"Why?!"

Lots of exclamations broke out amongst the brothers until a voice of reason spoke out, "When will they be arriving?"

"Well-" The doorbell sounded sounded, stopping her from answering and drawing all the brother's eyes in the direction of the hall.

Masaomi, of course, was the one to get up to get the door. When he opened it he saw four people, three girls and one guy. All of them were good looking, and they painted quite a picture standing there together. He was shocked for a moment, but then he remembered himself.

"Are you Ema's siblings?" He asked, already inferring that from the convenient timing and limited bit of information Ema told them.

"Yes, we are." Answered a beautiful, tall woman, with her left eye mysteriously and intriguingly covered. Masaomi had to force himself not to stare, both because of her eye and her startlingly beautiful looks. "Are you the eldest, Masaomi?" She asked, a look of caution on her face that made it difficult not to envision a wall of glass between them.

"Yes, I am, please come in." Masaomi answered with a courteous smile, stepping to the side to let them through. Though, his eyes were still on the tall, midnight haired woman.

"Ema!" One of siblings called out. The Asahina brothers looked on in awe- albeit different degrees of obviousness- at Ema's siblings as they entered the room. Both because they were all pretty eye-catching and the fact that they hadn't even _known_ Ema had siblings just moments prior.

One of the siblings was a tall woman. Tall, meaning she looked to be about 5'9 in height. Her skin was somewhere between medium and pale, a sharp contrast to her eyes and hair. Her hair was straight, dark midnight blue, and went past her hips while also strangely covering her left eye. Since the room was brightly lit and daylight flooded in through the windows, they could see that her dark eyes were actually purple, though they suspected very dark purple when they weren't under such intense light..

"Ne, aren't you that model? Sakura Umiko?" Tsubaki asked, obvious excitement lacing voice.

All the brothers looked at her in a mixture of disbelief and curiosity and she answered, "My real last name is Hinata. Yes, I am a model and I'm 21 years old, nice to meet you I guess."

 _'What?! So she really is a model?!'_ Variations of this astonished thought ran through almost all the brothers' minds.

Then they saw two other siblings, a boy and a girl, both had startlingly Amber colored eyes and similar facial features. The boy had tanned skin and must have been just under six feet judging by how he measured against the midnight haired woman. He also had wavy auburn hair that fell above his eyes. He looked about nineteen.

The girl was in sharp contrast to him with her almost unhealthily pale skin and meager height that didn't look like it even reached 5'0. Stark against her pale skin was her apple red hair, which fell in curls down to her mid-back. She looked young, especially because of her figure- or lack thereof-, and most of the brothers assumed that she was around thirteen or fourteen. Although the more observant brothers estimated she was a bit older.

"Ah, I know you two, you were the ones who 'took the musical world by storm' in Europe as a pair, but refused any and all offers for contracts." Fuuto said, but his tone contrasted his words in how utterly _bored_ he sounded.

"I'm Eizaki Hinata, age 19, I play backup for Eimi." The boy introduced.

"I'm Eimi Hinata, also 19, I sing." The girl answered with a cheerful smile.

"Eh?! Nineteen?!"

"Yep, we're fraternal twins." Eizaki said, giving his sister's head a pat.

Then they turned their attention to the last sibling dazedly, their minds still reeling from the new information.

The last sibling was kinda short, though not quite as short as Eimi as she actually seemed to breach five feet, if only just. Her skin was a more medium-tan. Her eyes were a deep and decidedly un-Japanese- if you couldn't already assume from her foreign looking features- turquoise. Her hair was wavy, waist length, and an eye-catching yellow-gold color.

 _'Where have I seen her before?'_ Both Fuuto and Hikaru thought simultaneously.

"I'm Kasai Hinata, age 15, I'm really nothing special, it's nice to meet you." She introduced, thought she looked equally annoyed and uncomfortable through each word. She seemed even less pleased to be there than the cautious Sakura.

Hikaru remembered where he saw her before, but decided not to voice it, already formulating an _amusing_ plan of how to confront her about it and Fuuto still couldn't remember.

"Well..." Ukyo started, glancing at all of them before giving a look to Wataru that said 'go ahead'.

"1,2,3-" Wataru cheered, more than happy to have even _more_ siblings.

"Welcome to the Asahina family!"

* * *

 **First chapter of this fic. It's just an introduction, but I hope you liked it!**


	2. Chapter 2 Awkward

Chapter 2 Awkward

All the new siblings got rooms on the same floor as Ema, much to many of the brothers' dismay. Not only because of the obvious reasons, but because the brothers on that floor were forced to move down two floors. Although, the loss of revenue in rent wasn't such a big deal when the Hinata siblings offered to give up part of their salaries for the inconvenience.

In only three days, the siblings were fairly well settled. Eizaki unpacked quickly to get it over with, so nothing was very well organized, but that was fine with him. Eimi just emptied things randomly until her room looked like a war had gone on in there, before Eizaki reluctantly helped her clean it up and it ended up more organized than _his_ room. Kasai didn't even bother unpacking more than the essentials, and boxes were piled up like towers throughout. Sakura, of course, had hers cleaned _and_ organized on the first day.

They had all managed to more-or-less avoid interaction with the brothers that wasn't over dinner or a short- nonexistent in Kasai's case- greeting.

On the fourth day at the Asahina house, Sakura had been glad to throw herself back into work after three days of doing what was, compared to her usual, basically nothing. She woke up at the crack of dawn and immediately moved to get ready. She changed out of her pajamas, just plain shorts and a tank top, and into a t-shirt and jeans that were ripped from use rather than style. She snatched up her purse and made her way to the bathroom on that floor to go about her morning routine. Then, she grabbed her purse and dashed off.  
It may have been time off during summer for other people her age who were likely enjoying the waiting period before adolescence and adult life- aka college, but she had work. Three photo shoots before lunch and two TV interviews after, then another photo shoot before she had to go and beg the agency to let her take an acting job. She knew because she'd had Arina- her manager- send over her schedules each night so she didn't forget anything.

Sakura eyed the elevator but, knowing how much time it took comparatively, she just decided to run downstairs. Immediately, she noticed the presence of someone, or rather two someones, on the couch. Neither of those someones were her sisters or Eizaki.

There in the lobby sat Tsubaki and Azusa.

"Why are you guys up already?" Sakura asked, and they looked up. More than that, why were they in the lobby when they could be on the fifth floor if they were looking for an area to relax?

"Oh, hi Sakura-chan." Tsubaki greeted familiarly and Sakura felt her face twitch.

 _'Chan? We just met.'_ She thought, eyeing him warily.

"Hello, Sakura-san." Azusa greeted. Sakura let the wariness on her face fade at his more proper greeting, although on the inside it was only lessened. Then, he answered her question with, "We were just practicing a script, where are you going?"

"To a photo shoot." She answered without really thinking and instantly regretted it.

"Ooh, can we come?" Tsubaki asked immediately.

"Definitely not." Sakura shot down in a blunt tone, but Tsubaki was _not_ discouraged.

"Do you have a car?" He asked with a cheeky smile on his face. Sakura's eyes widened in realization. Tsubaki chuckled and Azusa coughed into his hand to hide his smile. Sakura lightly blushed, and contemplated ignoring the sort-of offer. Unfortunately, the fact that she'd never make it on time in any mode of public transportation, let alone by foot, made her sigh in resignation.

"W-will you please drive me?" Sakura had to forget her pride for a moment, for the sake of her job. Not that she'd lose it from one time being late, but Sakura took her work seriously and that wouldn't change just because of this small dilemma.

"Only if we can stay for your photo shoot." Tsubaki negotiated, annoying grin ever-present.

"F-fine." Sakura allowed begrudgingly, though her face was dusted with pink and she could practically feel her nerves frying from the mixture of annoyance and embarrassment.

"Yay!" Tsubaki cheered in triumph. Azusa shook his head at his twin's behavior and Sakura glared, but Tsubaki was too wrapped up in his small victory to notice.

Tsubaki was all too eager to drag Sakura and Azusa out the door. Sakura contemplated whether he was cheerful because he liked teasing her or if he was actually a fan of hers. That thought was interesting and...weird. Maybe he just wanted to see a photo shoot, though. Sakura imagined voice actors didn't get to have many of them.

Yes, she did know he was a voice actor, he didn't even use a stage name like she and many others did.

Sakura settled herself into the back of the car while the twins sat up front. Tsubaki had Azusa drive the car whilst he rode shotgun and occasionally glanced back at a mildly flustered Sakura. From what he'd seen of her, she was cautious and calm tempered, but it seemed she could get flustered too. It was as interesting a discovery as it was an entertaining one for him and he was tempted to tease her for a reaction.

Finally, Tsubaki noticed Sakura's appearance. Not her good looks, he'd noticed those the second he met her- _before_ , if you counted in magazines. No, he was referring to her clothing. She was wearing a solid white t-shirt and old-looking jeans. The clothes were obviously fitted for a girl, but they were also surprisingly plain. It contrasted both Sakura's stunning natural looks and the fact that she made her career in modelling.

"Ne, Sakura-chan." Tsubaki decided to pry.

"Y-yeah?" Said girl answered, a little taken aback when he suddenly spoke to her after a decent amount of silence and also still a bit embarrassed over what happened minutes prior.

"Aren't models supposed to wear cute clothes?" He questioned curiously.

"Why would I do that outside of work?" She asked with an irritated sigh- back to normal, finally. The question at least seemed to have cleared her previous embarrassment from her mind.

Tsubaki turned back around, shrugging at her answer. He supposed she had a point. Her choice of career didn't _have_ to dictate her style. It _did_ make him wonder if she was a model simply because it was the obvious option or because she enjoyed her work.

Tsubaki didn't bother to voice _that_ question, though. The rest of the ride passed with no more words spoken between them, the only conversation passing between Tsubaki and Azusa.

* * *

Eimi contemplated Eizaki's words as she rode the elevator up to the common area and, more importantly, to breakfast. She didn't get how it was _such_ a big deal. They wouldn't think about her as anything more than the adopted daughter of their mother's new husband. No big deal to them, they were just living in the same house now and Eimi felt no reason to change her routines. Besides, she had seen how they all looked at Ema.

Finally, she got off the elevator and walked into the kitchen where Kaname, Ukyo, Subaru, Masaomi, and Wataru were gathered. All of them turned red when they saw her, save for Kaname and Wataru. Then, an out of breath Eizaki came sprinting down the stairs and threw a blanket around her.

"You have...to go...change!" Eizaki commanded, although the seriousness was undermined by his panting.

"But why?" Eimi asked, tilting her head to the side. Eizaki gave a pleading look to the brothers, as if to say 'can someone _please_ knock some sense into her'. He was so far beyond pride at this point. His sister needed to understand that it just wasn't something she could do.

"Eh, well..." Masaomi started, but seemed at a loss.

Subaru just plain couldn't speak at all.

"It's just..." Ukyo tried, but he didn't seem to know what to say either.

"You look adorable." Kaname complemented in a flirty voice and winked.

All of the brothers shot him hard looks. Still, it seemed to serve for Eizaki's purpose well enough. Eimi's face went so red that it nearly matched her hair and she wasted to time running back up the stairs to the balcony area and quickly entering the elevator without a word.

Eizaki and the brothers looked on with dumbfounded expressions and then back over to Kaname who just smirked. He wouldn't say it outloud, because he was confused himself, but he didn't want his other brothers so see her like that...although he had to say that _he_ appreciated it.

Whatever other men seemed to think, Eimi's lack of a significant figure wasn't a turnoff to him. He hadn't actually pegged her as being any less than seventeen in the first place, though she was _very_ cute. Actually, her slender figure, cute face and large amber eyes were charming.

These thoughts only made Kaname more confused. Sure, he appreciated a good-looking woman, but he found his mind drifting slightly away from Ema.

Kaname stared off in the direction Eimi disappeared.

* * *

Sakura went straight to the location for the photo shoot and immediately her eyes latched onto the utter chaos. Chaos, the likes of which she had never seen at one of her photoshoots. What the _hell_ could have caused this? Her manager and another manager were arguing very animatedly in the center of it all. Sakura calmly strode over to Arina and immediately picked up on the problem. Though, admittedly, it wasn't such a feat when her manager shouted it at the top of her lungs.

"What do you mean he can't make it?! How are we supposed to shoot without a male model?!" Arina screeched in outrage. The angriest Sakura had ever seen her, in fact.

Then again, no one had ever had the balls to bail on Sakura. Generally it did others good to work with her, considering how popular she was. Although, she'd heard the model was relatively new and she supposed he could have gotten intimidated by her 'never fails' reputation.

"Arina? What's going on?" Not that she didn't already get the gist. Arina turned to Sakura with a still angry expression that quickly faded into a smirk. Sakura blinked before she realized that Arina wasn't looking at her...but behind her.

Sakura knew that look and it spelled trouble...lots of trouble...in _huge_ capital letters.

"Who are these handsome gentlemen?" Arina asked, fluttering her eyelashes and tilting her head slightly in a way that drove most of Arina's 'targets' crazy, but just made Sakura feel on edge.

"My step brothers, why-" Sakura started and then paused as the last bit of the puzzle clicked into place. "Arina-" She warned, but was quickly cut off by a now _very_ happy looking Arina.

"Hello gentlemen, we're in a bit of a pickle and I was wondering if you would help us out?" Arina questioned sweetly, ignoring the now irritated Sakura.

"Arina-" Sakura practically growled.

"You see our male model quit on us and if one of you could step in for him, just this once?" Arina requested and while Sakura was just about to insist they didn't have to- and shouldn't- do any such thing, Tsubaki spoke.

"Sure." He accepted.

"What?!" Sakura whipped her head to him in shock, but Tsubaki only grinned back.

Sakura mentally cursed. He was _amused_. Tsubaki was amused with how flustered Sakura was. A realization that made Sakura glare daggers at him while Arina seemed to be mentally cheering at his acceptance. If she also realized what he was doing, then she just didn't care.

"Today's theme is the perfect date." Arina informed him.

"Arina, he's my step brother!" Sakura hissed out in protest.

"So you're not actually related." Arina stated, winking at Sakura. Said girl was totally flustered and took a moment to stutter angrily. Then, suddenly her expression turned serious. She walked up to Tsubaki and poked her finger into his chest, she looked straight into his eyes- which wasn't too difficult considering the near non existent height difference.

"Don't. Mess. This. Up. I schedule so many photo shoots in one day because I don't mess up. If you don't think you can be held up to the same standard, then this is your chance to back out." Tsubaki unconsciously gulped and then blushed when he realized how close her face was. He had to consciously try not to look at her chest. Her stance, while intimidating, also served to enhance her...assets.

Tsubaki swallowed and calmed his expression into an equally serious one before replying with a confident, "I'm not backing down."

Then, Sakura went to get changed and some people led Tsubaki to do the same.

Tsubaki resolved to take this chance to find out more about Sakura. She seemed overly cautious around him and his brothers, but the second they arrived, all of her caution seemed to fall way. She felt secure enough here, at her job, that the caution dropped and shattered like a glass wall. He could tell that didn't happen often, which was even more reason to use this time when he guard was down to figure her out.

"Sakura said something to me." Tsubaki spoke to one of the people doing his makeup.

"Hm, really? What'd she say?"

"She said she didn't make mistakes, is that true?" Tsubaki inquired. It had thrown him off a bit. Sure, he'd heard snippets of information about Sakura before they knew each other, but he was a voice actor. They came from completely different professions.

"Let's just say that Sakura-chan making a mistake is like a lunar eclipse, meaning it rarely ever happens and when it does people are blinded." The makeup artist explained cryptically...and oddly seriously.

"Why blinded?" Tsubaki decided to ask instead of commenting on the weird simile.

"Because Sakura-chan is so serious while working, seeing her flustered is just too adorable!" The makeup artist gushed.

Tsubaki knew that much. Sakura was gorgeous, one of the huge reasons she was so popular as a model, but she rarely showed her cute side.

"Do you know why she covers up her left eye?" Tsubaki questioned, surprising even himself. It had been at the back of his mind since...well, since before he even met her. Before he assumed it was like him and Azusa, that she did it for style. Now, he didn't think that was the case. The Sakura he knew cared very little for style outside of her job and yet he hadn't seen her with her left eye uncovered.

"Well, I've heard rumors, but I doubt any of them are true. But in any case, it's good for her model career as it's become part of her image, but I heard she wants to be an actress. Of course, even with her talent, being an actress is about adapting to a role. So, since covering one eye is a very uncommon thing, the only way she could land a role like that is if one was made for her." The makeup artist explained, eagerly telling Tsubaki much more information than he'd even asked for. _'She wants to be an actress?'_

Tsubaki knew of other famous people who had ambitions to be in different professions. His own little brat of a brother, Fuuto, was one of them. Still, he found it surprising that Sakura wanted to go into acting. What surprised him even more was the realization that covering up her eye seemed important enough to risk that chance at an acting career.

"In any case," The makeup artist spoke, "you can go out now."

* * *

 **Review?**


	3. Chapter 3 Photoshoot and Book Signing

Chapter 3 Photo Shoot and Book Signing

Kasai woke up late, which wasn't especially unusual. Really, whether she was going to wake up on time was a bit of a hit or miss with her. Sometimes she woke up right at her alarm and other times...well, let's just say that Kasai took off in a mad dash after her morning routine.

Still, even though she went straight towards the stairs, she managed to catch Eimi coming out of the elevator. The short teen was about as red in the face as her hair and took off towards her room so quickly that Kasai couldn't get a word out. Kasai stopped for a moment to blink confusedly.

Then, she shrugged it off and proceeded to run up the stairs to get breakfast. Normally, she would laze around and not bother to rush through anything no matter how late she woke up, but today was different. Today she had a book signing and, since she woke up so extremely late, only an hour left to eat and make her way there.

When she entered the kitchen, she went straight for the fridge, popping a piece of toast in the toaster as she grabbed her other ingredients. She didn't bother concerning herself with the astounded looks pointed at the perverted monk brother, Kaname.

"Kasai," Eizaki drawled suspiciously, "where are you going?"

"Nowhere special." Kasai answered casually and Eizaki just gave a long-suffering sigh in return, knowing that she would tell all her new brothers about everything eventually.

Kasai picked the toast out of the toaster the second it popped, throwing on a slice of cheese and then taking off back down the stairs as quickly as she possibly could without dropping her minimal breakfast.

All of the brothers were left staring after her in confusion, one surprising event taking up space in their minds traded for another. Their new step-siblings were proving to be each their own brands of baffling.

Kasai ran down the street but started walking at a casual pace when she turned the corner. It was really just to piss her manager, Dillon, off. He thought she was such an immature slacker. While she wouldn't deny the truth in that, it wasn't entirely right, either. Still, it was fun to perpetuate that opinion and Kasai was never one to make it _easy_ to deal with her. Finally, she made it to the car waiting for her. Her manager sat in the passenger seat and the chauffeur was making sure there were no reporters anywhere following them.

"You're scheduled for," Dillon informed her, shoving down the annoyance she was sure he felt, "a book signing and then a dancer job at a concert. One of their dancers cancelled last minute and they heard you were a fast learner." He didn't bother listening to hear if Kasai had anything to say- or complain- about regarding the schedule. He knew she loved dancing, and the book signing...he shrugged. Kasai would just have to deal, with certain fame came certain obligations. The chauffeur started driving.

* * *

Sakura was honestly a bit stunned. When it came time for her to see Tsubaki all dressed up for the photoshoot, she wasn't sure what she'd expected. She spent a good portion of her life modeling and seeing equally successful and attractive male models on her jobs. Yet, she was honestly astonished. Perhaps it had been because she just wasn't expecting it or because just moments ago he had been mercilessly teasing her, but Sakura _didn't_ expect Tsubaki to be this attractive.

Sure, she'd admit, he _was_ good-looking. Miwa and her belated husband had obviously had great genetics (or sold their souls, whatever), but the makeup artists had _really_ done their job well. Not only did Tsubaki look much less immature, but he looked like the kind of guy Sakura would _actually_ go on a date with.

His silver hair was as messy as ever, but there were a couple of pink clips keeping it out of his eyes, revealing both captivating violet orbs. He had on a button-down t-shirt that was striped pink and dark grey. He was wearing light grey khakis with his hands tucked inside the pockets. His shoes were black dress shoes with grey laces that made the whole outfit have a serious, but still semi-casual look. Those designers were geniuses. Sakura had absolutely no idea how they'd managed to do it when Tsubaki had literally only showed up to take the place of the male model in the shoot right before, but they'd effortlessly captured his style.

More than that, if Sakura was being completely and totally honest with herself, the thought of going on a date with the Tsubaki who stood in front of her now made her heart speed up for a second. Sakura only had to give one shake of her head and the feeling left. Still, this was going to be difficult. Six words Sakura never thought she'd say about work.

Tsubaki almost immediately caught sight of a now breathtakingly beautiful Sakura. He had _actually_ forgotten to breath for a second, though his eyes immediately went to take in every inch of her. Of course, he didn't just notice that she was attractive right then, Tsubaki wasn't blind. She was a natural beauty but seeing her dressed like that made even _Tsubaki_ speechless for a moment.

Her midnight blue hair was braided to the side with her bangs still covering her left eye and some longer pieces of fringe framing her face. Her naturally petal colored lips were painted red and her eye makeup was subtle. She was wearing navy blue, mid-thigh length dress. The skirt had pretty ruffles going out from her waist. Her belt was black and plain accenting the curves of her waist. The dress had long lace sleeves a sweetheart neckline that dipped just low enough to reveal the top of her chest and make Tsubaki have a hard time tearing his eyes away. She had on black sandal wedges that were only an inch high and ivory, rose patterned tights.

It didn't make Sakura look any less intimidating, maybe more so, but it somehow got Tsubaki thinking.

It was odd, because Tsubaki had long obsessed over women with little sister-like attributes, it was one of the main reasons he'd so quickly fallen for Ema, but Sakura was nothing like that. She was cautious, and mature in looks and personality, but he somehow felt his interest being sparked by her.

Tsubaki tried to shake those odd thoughts off. Sakura had warned him against messing up and he would need to focus to keep up. Still, at least Tsubaki was confident in his ability to act charming and Sakura made him _want_ to charm her. A thought that only made him all the more confused. What was he thinking? What about Ema?

* * *

Kasai got out of the car and tried to hold back a grimace as she was bombarded by fans. There was a chorus of excited and adoring speech, the volume of which could have rivaled a football stadium. Still, Kasai was grateful that her books even had such devoted fans, so holding back at displeasure wasn't _too_ difficult.

Still, she had to admit that not all of it was something she appreciated. Specifically, some borderline stalkerish comments shouted out at her and some people who were getting too close for Kasai. She valued her personal space and didn't approve of it being violated.

Thankfully, Dillon had it all back under control with a shout of, "She's here only to sign books and that will _wait_ until she's inside!" Dillon may have looked like a college freshman without his glasses, but he knew how to handle overzealous fans.

There was disappointed and irritated clamor, but after a moment they reluctantly cleared a path for Kasai to walk through. Although, some glares were shot at Dillon.

"One of my fans is going to kill you someday." Kasai deadpanned just loud enough so Dillon and only Dillion could hear her.

"I'll be killed sooner if I let one of our agency's most promising writers be harassed without challenge." Dillon replied.

"Aw, thanks, teen manager!" Kasai mockingly thanked, and Dillon twitched at the nickname. Kasai snickered behind her hand at his sensitivity.

Admittedly, maybe it was mean of her to pick on his insecurity about his young looks. Kasai would have felt bad, but Dillon only even put up with her because she helped his career. He used her to become more successful and she used him as an outlet for her stress.

When Kasai finally made it inside she began signing books. A few inappropriate comments were given, to which her manager responded by calling security. Two hours later her hand was majorly cramped, but she was at least done signing.

"Kasai." Her manager called out while she was distracted with stretching her hand.

"Yes?" Kasai looked over to him, surprised he was talking to her at all.

Dillon tended to talk to her as little as possible and there usually wasn't much to say after she was done signing. It honestly made her a bit envious of Sakura's relationship with _her_ manager. Arina was more of a friend to her sister than a colleague. Sometimes Kasai felt that her and Dillon were barely even that. He seemed to see her as an annoying kid most often. No, Kasai _wasn't_ jealous because she wanted to be friends with her manager. Absolutely not.

"There's someone who would like to meet you, he's also an author. Crime novels, actually." Dillon explained.

"Really?" Kasai perked up.

Kasai would admit that she was excited. She loved conversing with other writers. There was just something other authors understood that people who _weren't_ writers just didn't understand. It was like they spoke an exclusive language that only other writers could speak. She was _literally_ skipping with excitement.

"And stop skipping like that," Her manager scolded, "you already look like a kid, skipping doesn't help."

"But I _am_ a kid; I'm only fifteen." Kasai spoke dryly.

"Yes, but you don't have to make it obvious. Act with some dignity." Dillon advised, or maybe it was supposed to be an order, but Kasai considered it just a suggestion. Which was why she merely rolled her eyes at him and continued skipping.

"Here he is." Dillon spoke and Kasi stopped. She hadn't even been paying attention enough to see the new presence. Which was why, when Kasai looked up, she completely froze. "This is Hikaru Asakawa."

Even in male clothes and using a pen name, she recognized him. Hikaru Asahina. The long red hair and sharp olive eyes were a dead giveaway. She mostly remembered him because when she introduced herself, he seemed to recognize her. Now she knew why, she supposed. Kasai would have screeched if not for the total loss of oxygen in her lungs due to shock.

"Nice to meet you, I'm a big fan of your books." Hikaru smiled, Kasai nearly flinched.

 _'Not good.'_

Kasai blanched and Hikaru only continued to smile.

* * *

Tsubaki and Sakura were sitting in the cafe. Cafe Fleur, the location of the shoot, was one she had been to a few times before. Though, that was only because the owner frequently rented it out to her agency for photo shoots, filming, and events. At this point, the owner even knew Sakura personally.

Sakura conceded that she was surprised by Tsubaki's professionalism. It made sense, she supposed, considering his voice acting career. She was sure he'd have to act his best for certain events and promotions. It actually made her feel a bit guilty for dismissing the notion that he could be serious earlier.

Tsubaki was likewise impressed with Sakura. Her 'I never make mistakes' comment that was confirmed by the makeup artist made sense to him now. Sakura seemed very serious about her work. He felt remorseful that he'd at one point thought she only became a model for her looks.

There was lots of smiling, until Sakura casually stated, "Flirt with me."

She hadn't even dropped her smile as she suggested it. Tsubaki didn't question her, since she obviously knew what she was doing. Besides, he could see the merit in the idea. If they were pretending to be on an actual date, it could help to act normal, and what was more normal for a couple than some light flirting?

"You know, those deep purple eyes or yours really draw me in. I think I might get lost in them." Tsubaki flirted, a mischievous grin coming to his face as he did. He noticed Sakura frown a little at the mention of her eyes, but it was barely a second until her smile returned to her face.

"Likewise, your eyes are equally beautiful if not more." Sakura leaned in a bit over the table, her smile morphing into something sexier.

"That's nice of you to say, Sakura-chan." Tsubaki thanked before he also leaned in a bit over the Table and said in a voice that was a bit deeper, "But I don't think I could ever be quite so sexy." This had become a challenge, they both knew it, but they kept their smiles.

"Really, because it wouldn't be flattery to say that you left me stunned." Sakura flirted back. It wasn't even a lie, but she wouldn't tell him that.

"And it wouldn't be a joke to saw that you take my breath away." Tsubaki said with a wink. He would consider telling her later that she _did_ momentarily when he saw her earlier.

"Your hair is silver, like starlight." Sakura complemented, reached out and ran her fingers lightly through Tsubaki's hair.

"You're hair's like the night sky. I guess that means we're compatible." Then, Tsubaki leaned forward and twirled his finger around one of the longer strands of her hair left down, deciding not to push his luck by brushing her bangs out of her face.

Sakura forced herself not to lose her composure and pull away, but her eyes swept over to his hand, so close to her bangs and it made her nervous. That was why she didn't notice him moving closer until his lips connected with hers. Sakura froze and so did the Photographer.

"Idiot, don't stop! Take the photo!" Arina ordered.

For a moment, Sakura even kissed him back.

* * *

 **And Tsubaki makes a move!**

 **I assure you, Tsubaki isn't moving from Ema to Sakura without any time or reason, he's just drawn in by her and did something rash because of it- as is his nature...and as an authoress I'm totally milking it.**

 **Review?**


	4. Chapter 4 Denial and Dancing

Chapter 4 Denial and Dancing

"Hello, it's nice to meet you too." Kasai said politely, pasting a smile on her face, despite how on-edge she felt. "I'm glad you like my books. I've never heard of yours, but I'll make sure to give them a read."

The words she had just spoken were actually a blatant lie, she had read his books and even found them to be very interesting despite being a different genre than she usually enjoyed. If she were to be honest, the lie helped her nervousness. Something about lying, being in control of the information you relay to others to the point you could craft it in your head, just made her feel steadier.

"I'm glad you're considering reading them, but I don't think my books would fit your preferences." Hikaru taunted. It _was_ a taunt, even if it had seemed innocent enough. The words were spoken with a mocking mask of kind consideration.

Kasai could tell from the look in his eyes. Just like how she knew _he_ could tell from hers that she had lied, though he didn't make any effort to mention it. Their calculating gazes were both observing each other, even as Kasai's annoyance bubbled up in an involuntary response to his statement.

 _'What would he know about my preferences?'_

He obviously knew she had read his books, so why would he assume they weren't her type? Technically what he guessed _was_ true, his books weren't really her preferred genre, but it was still annoying that he assumed her preferences like that! Who did he think he was? He didn't even _know_ her!

Of course, none of this annoyance showed on her face.

Instead, Kasai spoke in an informative tone, "I like all kinds of books."

"Alright, I'm glad to hear, maybe I'll see you at one of my book signings." Hikaru spoke and Kasai felt her muscles tense.

Even so, she kept her smile up, but she was angry. Why? Simple, Hikaru had just set a trap for her and she was so busy with her irritation that she'd walked right into it. She should have been able to read it from his eyes like earlier, even if the rest of his expression was carefully crafted. Yet, she didn't, because she was too blinded by her need to rebuff his prior assumption- even _if_ it was technically accurate.

"Then I guess I'll be seeing you a lot from now on." It was a statement, but Hikaru caught Kasai's underlying question. Had he really meant that the way she thought he did?

"Yes, I look forward to it." He replied. Kasai would have liked to think it was smugly, but though it was close, the emotion just didn't fit Hikaru's temperament. As Hikaru passed her he whispered, "At home and at work." At this point there must have been a visible tick mark on her head, but somehow Kasai kept her smile.

But, in her head... _'That punk! How dare he?! Bastard!'_

"Can we please go now, Dillon?" Kasai asked, almost pleaded if only she had a little less self control, her manager.

He had already figured something was off with her, but her usage of his actual name confirmed it. She only seemed to do that when she was either too distracted or in a very bad mood. He stared at her for a moment, considering asking her what was bothering her. He decided that the best course of action was probably to let her work it out herself.

"... Alright." He finally answered, leading Kasai back to the waiting car.

* * *

After Tsubaki leaned back, his lips leaving hers in a drawn out motion, Sakura's eyes shot open.

"That's a wrap! Well done, both of you!"

Sakura shot up from her seat as soon as those words were shouted. She pressed the back of her hand to her lips, wiping at it like she could erase the fact that it had even happened. When that didn't work she abruptly stood and made her way over to Arina.

"What's left for today?" Sakura asked immediately, prepared to throw herself into her work after the event that had just occurred- _to forget_ the event that had just occurred.

"Three more photo shoots and two TV interviews." Arina answered her, but she looked giddy about what had just happened. Unlike Sakura, who would do almost anything to just _forget_ it had even happened.

"Good." Sakura said, relieved to have something to distract herself with. She didn't want to think right then. "Can you call a cab for me?" Sakura asked. Arina looked like she badly wanted to discuss- or squeal over- what had just occurred, but left Sakura alone.

Still, despite wanting the thoughts to stop, they just kept whirling around in her mind like a hurricane. Why? Why did he have to kiss her? He ruined everything. Sakura couldn't let him close. Any closer and the wall would collapse. She needed that wall. It set the boundary between her and the things she knew would hurt her. Tsubaki would just end up messing with her emotions before deciding he didn't care for her after all- that she was just a face pretty enough to draw his eyes away from Ema. So, she couldn't let him in. But that kiss...

Sakura paused, but then she shook her head.

 _'No. I can't let him get close.'_

Tsubaki watched helplessly as Sakura's expression became detached. He didn't know what to do as she got up and walked away. Should he call out to her? Should he apologize? He walked up to her while she was facing away and shaking her head.

"Sakura-chan? What's wrong?" Sakura whirled around, face red with embarrassment and anger.

"What's wrong?! You just suddenly kissed me and you ask me 'what's wrong'?!" She yelled at him, but then seemed to realize what she was doing and became detached again. "I've got work to do." She said impassively.

"Ah! Wait, let me drive you!" Tsubaki spoke, panicking slightly. He hadn't seen Sakura so unresponsive before, even when they'd just met. Before her attitude had just been a frost that nipped at him if he overstepped, but now it was like she had permanently stuck him in the ice age.

"I called a cab." Sakura spoke dispassionately, turning around in a way that could have been considered calm if her behavior wasn't so concerning.

"Sakura-chan, I need to know what you're thinking." Tsubaki pleaded.

It hadn't been this way with Ema, who had always been so open with them. Tsubaki didn't know what to do, if he were being honest. How was he supposed to respond? Did he try and comfort her or just leave her alone?

Sakura paused for a moment, but didn't answer him. Then, she walked off and was gone in seconds. Azusa came up behind Tsubaki and hit him on the head.

"Itai! That hurt Azu-nii!"

"Idiot." Azusa scolded.

Tsubaki found that he couldn't even refute that claim as he stared off in the direction Sakura had disappeared.

* * *

"So all I have to do is dance on the stage while some stupid idol sings?" Kasai snorted.

Dillon gave her a look, already aware that she couldn't care less for any other singer but her sister. Really, though? Couldn't she at least _act_ like she was glad for the opportunity? Moreover, she always seemed to make a point of dismissing any trial that came with work- as if the dance was already learned and the only thing she had to think about was how bratty her co-worker might be. Dillon would have chalked it up to the arrogance that came with fame if he hadn't been with Kasai before she was anywhere _close_ to famous. But no, it was just how Kasai was.

"Well, alright, where is this idol?" Kasai asked, impatient. Dillon sighed at her attitude and motioned for Kasai to follow him.

"His name is Fuuto Asakura, he's a very popular idol." Her manager explained while they were walking. _Very popular_ , Kasai knew that those words were Dillon's way of telling her to behave herself without outright _saying_ it.

"Fuuto Asakura?" She mumbled instead of pointing out his unsaid warning.

 _'Why does that name sound so familiar...another brother? No, his name is Asakura, besides that would be way too much of a coincidence.'_ She mentally laughed at herself for even thinking it was possible...

Kasai stopped dead in her tracks. Her manager took a few more steps before he realized Kasai had was no longer following. He looked back at her so see her frozen stiff, eyes wide, mouth in a tight line, her face drained of color.

"Kasai, Kasai..." Her manager tried before resorting to using the nickname she hated, "hime-chan~"

Kasai snapped out of her daze, but instead of glaring at him and throwing a fit she just turned to him with a face that looked like she was about to faint, surprising him further.

"Can we leave? I'll even go on a talk show if we can leave now." Kasai said, her tone pleading and exhausted. It was a far cry from her usual confident, uncompromising attitude.

Dillon's jaw dropped and his eyes widened, but he quickly regained composure and let out a sigh before answering, "Alright."

Kasai, while she did like to make things difficult for him, always did her job and did it well. If she wanted so badly to skip out on a job, he suspected she had a good reason. Of course, he also knew not to expect her to _tell_ him this good reason. Dillon sighed and shook his head long-sufferingly.

"Go on outside while I sort this out." Dillon ordered, mentally agonizing over how much trouble he was going to get into over this. Kasai gave a relieved grin before dashing off, leaving Dillon to smile with secret fondness.

Fuuto thought he saw golden hair out of the corner of his eye, but when he looked over, all he saw was a man with glasses. The man walked over to them and explained that the dancer he manages couldn't make it.

Oh well...he didn't really care. All that was currently bothering him was where he had seen Kasai before...

* * *

 **I'm not going to let Fuuto figure out Kasai this early in the fic, that would be** _ **boring**_ **.**

 **Review?**


	5. Chapter 5 Resolutions and Revelations

Chapter 5 Resolutions and Revelations

Eimi laid in her room on her still unmade bed after that scene downstairs...she had changed her clothes. Eimi laid on her back, forearm covering her eyes as she dozed off. Well, _mentally_ dozed off, not physically. Her nerves were practically fried from her prior embarrassment, her cheeks still slightly red. Questions plagued her mind.

What was that? Why did he say that? Why did she react like that?

Eimi's head was reeling. Her face was hot. Her legs were tired from all the stairs she'd ran down and her breath was short. She had little patience for all of these complications.

"I don't know!" She shouted. Maybe she hoped the questions would magically disappear once she did. They didn't.

Meanwhile, Kasai had been trying to sneak back to her room without further incident to hopefully get some peace and quiet when the shout made her startle and jump back...only to trip and fall flat on her back. Thankfully, she was able to jerk her head forward before it could hit the ground. Unfortunately, that didn't prevent the breath from being knocked out of her.

Kasai groaned as she tried- without success- to sit up. Eventually she just gave up and spread her arms out on the ground. The hallway had enough peace and quiet, she supposed.

* * *

All of the brothers a couple floors up in the kitchen heard an indistinguishable shout followed by a loud thud.

"I should probably-" Masaomi started to speak.

"I'll go too." Eizaki offered worriedly.

"I'll come with you." Kaname invited himself along.

Eizaki gave him a suspicious look before getting up, having an inkling that his prior behavior may have been less meaning to be helpful and more because Kaname was interested in his twin. Still, he wasn't about to argue when he didn't know if someone was hurt. All three of them sped to the elevator and went down the two floors to where the girls were staying. When they got there they saw Kasai sprawled out on the floor like a corpse, eyes closed and everything.

"Are you okay?!" Eizaki panicked.

Kasai opened her eyes. Eizaki was relieved to know that she at least wasn't dead or unconscious. Then she sat up slightly at his voice, only to groan and fall back again. Eizaki rushed over to her side, but didn't dare to do anything in case he accidentally made it worse. Masaomi ran over to her and sat her up straight.

"Ow ow ow ow!" Kasai protested. It was too chaotic for anyone to notice when Kasai pulled away slightly from his hands. Masaomi lifted the back of her shirt up carefully and examined her back before putting her shirt back down.

"You'll be fine, but you'll have some bruising." Masaomi said reassuringly. Eizaki proceeded to crouch down next to Kasai and help her up.

"Who made Eimi all insane?" Kasai glared around accusingly.

Eizaki face palmed at her way of putting their sister's current state. Honestly, where was all the tact she managed to show when lying to or manipulating people? Eizaki wondered if she just stuffed it back into her mind with whatever part of her brain was supposed to keep her temper in check.

Kaname looked off to the side, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck in response to her tactless question. Kasai quickly locked in on the not-so-subtle motion.

"You!" Kasai called him out, bristling like Juli would have in the same situation. "You perverted monk, stay away from my sister!" Her tone could make you forget she was only fifteen and barely above 5 feet tall.

"He didn't really do anything." Eizaki defended, even if he didn't want Kaname hitting on his twin sister, that didn't mean he wanted Kasai to murder the man...

"Oh," Kasai said hesitantly before voicing intuitively, "then what did he say?" Kaname and Eizaki flinched a bit, while Masaomi looked on worriedly. Kasai knew from their reactions that she had hit the nail on the head.

Kasai began yelling threats until Eimi, now changed into a ruffled white skirt and pink tank-top, came out of her room. Kaname didn't actually look too bothered and if Eizaki didn't dislike him and wasn't worried his sister was planning Kaname's death, he might have been impressed.

"Stop, he didn't do _or_ say anything wrong!" Eimi intervened. Kasai looked to her sister and then sighed.

"Fine, I'll let you off the hook." Kasai conceded before adding with a glare at Kaname, "This time."

"Well well," A new voice made itself known. Everyone turned to it, Kasai with a scowl on her face. "that was interesting, but should you really be judging him when you haven't even told them that yo-"

Kasai quickly walked over and clamped a hand over the annoyance- Hikaru's - mouth. Then, she proceeded to drag him off, and Eizaki couldn't help but think, _'I hope there are no knives lying around.'_

* * *

Sakura couldn't focus after what had happened. She actually made some mistakes during her work today. Two mistakes. Perfect Sakura had made two mistakes today, and those were only those that were visible. Her biggest mistake of the day wasn't one that showed on camera, but it was still the worst...she had kissed him back.

"Ugh." Sakura groaned in self directed annoyance.

"Pfft." Arina laughed at her.

"What?!" Sakura growled, patience having been worn thin at that point. She would probably regret shouting at Arina later, but for now she was unremorseful.

"You're stressed because a hot, available, and need I even say _sexy_ guy kissed you." Arina looked back at her with a taunting grin. "You need to get your head checked." Sakura grumbled and Arina laughed again.

"Well, now I just have to go talk with the people at the agency, and then this dreadful day will be over." Sakura sighed half in relief and half in anticipation.

"If this your idea of a dreadful day then sign me up." Arina grinned as Sakura exited. Said girl rolled her eyes in response before walking in.

About half an hour later, Sakura came out of the agency with her usual stoic face, but her eyes were filled with disappointment. Arina's sympathetic look showed that she had picked up on it as much as the reassuring hand on her shoulder.

" _People pick models because they have a certain look that they want for their brand or add, but in acting you're expected to change your looks to fit your character's personality. If you still say you won't uncover your eye, then my answer is still no."_ Sakura recalled what her boss said.

It's not like she didn't already expect the answer to be no, but his explanation as to why was what made her so depressed. She put a hand over her hair that was covering her eye. She couldn't do what he wanted her to. She wasn't ready to uncover her eye, and honestly, she wasn't sure if she ever would be.

"Arina, can you call a taxi?" Sakura asked, emotionally exhausted from the day's events.

Arina gave her a sad smile, "Sure."

* * *

"What. Are. You. Doing?!" Kasai shouted, enunciating every word.

"Me? Nothing, why? You don't want them to know you're a bestselling author?" Hikaru questioned.

"Of course I don-" Kasai began to protest, but stopped herself mid-sentence. "But that was a trick question. Are you done testing me, or analyzing me, or whatever?!" Kasai growled at him.

"Hmm~ that's pretty perceptive of you Kasai-chan, how did you know I wasn't just trying to get to know my new little sister?" Hikaru said innocently, but Kasai could read underneath it.

"Please," Kasai snorted. "I'm not an idiot."

"Hmm~" Hikaru hummed thoughtfully with his usual cheery tone.

"Stop 'Hmm~'ing already!" Kasai shouted in her immensely annoyed state.

"So, why don't you want everyone to know about your books? Don't teenagers usually like to brag about their accomplishments?" Hikaru questioned her.

"Didn't I tell you to _stop_ analyzing me already?!" Kasai shouted at him.

"And how exactly did you recognize me in male clothes before your manager even said my name?" With this question he took a step forward, and Kasai took a step back. This continued until Kasai's back hit the wall, causing her to flinch in pain. Hikaru put his hands on the wall, blocking any chance of escape. "Aren't you going to answer any of my questions?"

"Why should I?!" Kasai barked.

"Hmm~" Hikaru leaned closer, and Kasai, since she couldn't move back anymore, just begged for the wall to swallow her up.

"P-personal space." Kasai stuttered out, squeezing her eyes shut.

"Oh~ so you have issues with physical contact?" Hikaru questioned like it was the most interesting prospect, his question being answered when Kasai flinched. "Thanks for the information." Hikaru said cheerily before removing himself from caging Kasai and walking off down the hall.

Once she heard the elevator open and close, Kasai allowed herself to let out a shaky breath. She opened her eyes, the usually bright turquoise dulled slightly. After a moment, she let herself slide down the wall to sit propped up against it.

"Shit." She mumbled as she leaned her head back to stare at the ceiling.

* * *

Sakura was quiet the whole way back to the residence. She made mental plans to just to sneak back in and go to sleep. Her hopes went unrecognized as Tsubaki was waiting right at the door for her.

"What do you want?" Sakura asked, slightly irritated, but mostly just tired. She wanted this day to be _done_ already.

She had just been told she couldn't be an actress because of something that she didn't even want to think about. She had been planning on sleeping away her troubles. She didn't expect another to be thrown at her so suddenly.

"Ah, uh, I just wanted to say that, uh, this morning I was just messing around." Tsubaki said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Tsubaki's words stung more than she would have expected.

"Just...messing around?" Sakura asked, her tone empty. Her tired purple eyes rested on him, the emotions in them fizzing out like a candle.

She wasn't sure what she had been expecting after that kiss. She honestly wasn't, but she had apparently let herself expect _something_ , because there was a distinct disappointment under the emotionless facade she was putting up.

' _So, I've been used for entertainment...again.'_

The thought bothered her more than it should have after two years.

"Yeah...sorry I took it too far." Tsubaki apologized.

"No," Sakura protested, shifting her head until her hair hid her expression from view. "It's fine." Then she walked past Tsubaki and went straight up to her room.

It wasn't until she had locked the door to her room did she let the pain take over. Sakura walked over to her bad and laid on her side, pulling one of her pillows to her chest as she let her tears fall. It hurt.

What was wrong with her? Didn't she want him to stay away? But, if that was the case, then why did it hurt so much?

* * *

 **Some hints into their pasts here...and an extra bit of comedy. ;) You're welcome.**

 **Review?**


	6. Chapter 6 Dealing With It

Chapter 6 Dealing With It

The next day, even Sakura didn't walk out of the house early in the morning for work. Eimi didn't come downstairs with a huge smile to chatter excitedly with everyone. Kasai didn't rush downstairs to get to some event she forgot about until just minutes prior. It was odd. Between Ema and Eizaki, there was enough worry to power Tokyo. Something was up, they both could tell. So, the only answer was to investigate. Of course, Eizaki would ask- interrogate- the brothers while Ema attempted to find out what exactly was wrong with their sisters.

"Sakura-nee-chan?" Ema said as she knocked on Sakura's door. She knocked and spoke lightly, in case Sakura was upset, she didn't want to cause her more trouble.

"Ema?" Sakura asked through the door. Ema scrunched her brows together at her sister's slightly scratchy voice.

"Yes, it's me." Ema said and Sakura opened her door. Ema was surprised to see Sakura's hair tied up and away from her face and her eyes red and puffy from crying.

"S-Sakura-nee-chan?!" Ema panicked at her sister's state. The red staining the rims of her eyes and her nose was concerning. The fact that her hair was tied up, revealing her blind eye, was even more so.

"Yeah, I look terrible don't I?" Sakura questioned with a small, strained smile, her hand twitching obviously with the instinct to cover up her eye. "You can come in."

Ema entered and shut the door. After another moment of consideration, she also locked it. Ema turned back to Sakura with a concerned look. Said girl sighed in return before sitting down on her bed and patting the spot next to her in invitation. Sakura faced forward at the wall, obviously trying to keep calm. Ema sat next her her hesitantly.

Ema stayed silent for a moment before cautiously speaking, "Sakura-nee-chan, are you okay?"

"No." Sakura answered honestly, biting her lip in irritation when her eyes filled with tears again. "I just- why do people always walk away when things get complicated? My real father, my mother, _him_ , and now Tsubaki too?" Sakura turned her head to Ema. Ema was met with her sisters beautiful purple eye, and the light pink-ish looking blind one she always covered up. Both were brimming with tears. "I mean, I don't love him, but I- I let him in for a second and...it was just- it was nice, to have someone be there."

"It's okay, I'll always be here. So will Kasai-chan, and Eimi-nee-chan, and Eizaki-nii-san." Ema said as she wrapped her arms around Sakura and let her cry into her shoulder. She had never seen her sister like this. Sakura was always so good at hiding her emotions, dealing with things herself so they didn't have to. Ema only hoped that this would help her sister to cheer up.

* * *

Eizaki knew that the brothers had something to do with the way his sisters, save for Ema, were acting and he was not happy. If fact, he was more than just unhappy, he was _angry_. They hadn't even been at their new residence a _week_ and his new _idiot_ step brothers were _already_ ruining things! He would yell at them to fix it. That is, if he could manage not to snap and kill them first.

Or at least that was what he was planning on doing. Unfortunately, after walking into the living room and seeing the most cheery and fun-loving of the brothers putting of such a depressing aura, he couldn't even think about yelling, let alone killing. He was sure that Tsubaki was the one to make Sakura upset- he had gotten the run down from Arina when Sakura refused to pick up her phone one too many times.

Eizaki sighed to himself and wondered whether he could just turn and walk away. Let the idiot stew in his own self-punishment and be done with it. Yet, Eizaki knew Sakura well enough to know that having Tsubaki punish himself and leave her alone wouldn't help her. Letting someone feel guilty over her also wasn't his older sister's style. So, Eizaki resigned himself as he walked over to the depressed silver-haired brother.

"What's wrong with you exactly?" Eizaki questioned as neutrally as he could, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice. Yelling would not help the situation. He knew that.

"Eizaki-san?" Tsubaki asked looking up to reveal his depressingly gloomy face. Tsubaki smiled bitterly, casting his eyes to the side, "Ah, well, I tried to make something right and I just ended up making it worse."

"What exactly did you do?" Eizaki asked, his eyebrow twitching while he suppressed the urge to grab the idiot's collar and scream it at him. That at least confirmed his suspicion that Tsubaki was the reason for Sakura's behavior. Not that he had doubted it.

"Well, I...kissed Sakura." Tsubaki admitted. Eizaki felt the urge to strangle the silver-head come back, he just barely resisted it. Tsubaki didn't seem to notice the increase in killing intent as he continued speaking, "She...seemed upset afterwards, so I tried to pass it off as just me messing around."

If Tsubaki were being completely honest, he didn't know _why_ he had passed off the kiss for him messing around. He wanted to say it was his own confusion, but Tsubaki had been able to settle his emotions before he'd walked up to the midnight-haired beauty that night. He _did_ like Sakura, though he wasn't entirely sure to what extent. Then, why? He had never gone as far as to pass off his feelings as something else when it was Ema, even when she seemed distressed. What was it about Sakura that made him feel so...at a loss?

"Idiot!" Eizaki had lost his patience. So much for not yelling... "Let me put it simply, Sakura doesn't like when people get close to her because it hurts her when they _leave_." Eizaki explained and Tsubaki's eyes widened. "You happen to have broken the record for getting close and then you just _had_ to go and break the record for leaving, too."

Tsubaki stared up at Eizaki, wide-eyed. Tsubaki hadn't know. He saw Sakura's closed off behavior, but he hadn't even considered an...and actual _reason_ for it. As stupid as it sounded, Tsubaki hadn't thought anything about Sakura's insecurities or faults. She appeared so strong, so confident, so skilled that he just hadn't bothered to look deeper. Did it make him less interested? No, no it didn't. It made him...want to comfort her. Yet, Tsubaki had been the one to tear those old wounds open in the first place.

"Oh god," Tsubaki mumbled, "I really messed up."

"Well, go and make it right!" Eizaki yelled at him.

Tsubaki startled. "Right!" Tsubaki shouted and scrambled out of the room.

* * *

"Eimi-nee-chan, are you alright?" Ema questioned through the door.

She was more worried about Eimi that Sakura. Not only because Sakura would have bounced back- she'd be disappointed again, at the fickleness of most people, but she would act tough for her family- but because Ema seldom saw Eimi upset.

"Ema?" Eimi replied through the door.

Ema knew something was wrong when her sister dropped the honorifics.

Eimi walked up to the door and opened it without too much hesitation. Ema was happy to see she wasn't crying- after Sakura, she wasn't sure how much more her heart could take- but she did look troubled. Her downcast eyes and wringing hands were a far cry from her usual cheer.

"What's wrong?" Ema asked.

"I'm just-" Eimi sighed, her amber eyes meeting Ema's light brown ones. Ema could see the confusion in them, even before her sister voiced it, "confused."

Eimi sat down on her bed slowly, as if she was unsure she even wanted to. Ema sat besides her, now even determined to help. It was so unlike her sister to be hesitant and confused, she was usually so grounded.

"About what?" Ema pressed, although Eimi's hesitance made her feel almost guilty for prying, she still needed to get to the root of the problem to make her feel better.

"It's just..." Eimi pondered what she was going to say. Really, she was just as confused about _why_ it was she felt confused in the first place. It was all so...confusing.

Eimi sighed helplessly.

 _'Was it that Kaname flirted with me?'_ She metally questioned. But, no- she could already tell that wast it. _'No, It's just-'_

"Everyone." Eimi said, a bitterness she didn't even know herself to be capable of lacing her voice. Ema flinched a bit at her sister's tone, feeling the deviation from her usual mood like ice on her skin. "Everyone is being so nice, why?" Eimi mumbled to herself, seeming to forget her sister's presence right next to her. "I'm nothing but trouble for everyone in my life."

Her mom. Her dad. Eizaki. She could keep listing, if she tried. The list would run a mile long.

"That's not true!" Ema shouted, knocking Eimi out of her stupor and displaying a boldness that was a complete shock for her sister and for the for the usually passive girl, herself.

"What?" Eimi looked up to her sister, her previous apprehension replaced by the surprise at her younger sister's outburst.

Even if Ema was surprised herself, she continued speaking boldly, determined to knock some sense into Eimi. Her sister thought she caused them trouble? "We want you around! Me, and Eizaki-nii-san, and Sakura-nee-chan and Kasai-chan, and the Asahinas too!"

Ema was practically- no, literally on the verge of tears, her vision blurring as she faced her older sister. Her siblings had never told her about themselves. There were some things she could figure out- their likes and dislikes, personalities- but there were other things that she could never get them to tell her. Yes, she could find out some small things- Sakura's eye, Eimi's sickliness and Eizaki's protectiveness, Kasai's scar on her palm...but she didn't really _know_.

"We're here for you." Ema stated with all the conviction she had in her. She wasn't a sure person, or a physically strong one, and maybe sometimes she was oblivious...but she could be there for her family, even if they hadn't always been able to be there for her.

"Thank you." Eimi thanked, a smile stuck between sheepish and happy making its way onto her face.

That was when a thought struck Ema- a detail she hadn't noticed before.

 _'She hasn't even shed a tear.'_

Had Eimi _ever_ shed a tear in front of her? She searched her memories for a minute, but came up blank.

' _I've never seen her cry.'_

Ema considered saying something, but stopped when she looked again at the smile on her sister's face. She didn't want to break that. So, Ema remained silent.

* * *

"Kaname."

Eizaki said the blond monk's name with an anger truly reflecting just how he felt. The warning in his voice wrapped around every syllable. Eizaki had come to find Kaname right after his talk with Tsubaki, sure the he was the cause of Eimi's troubles after his comment to her a couple days ago.

"I got it." Kaname spoke

"I'm warnin-" Eizaki blinked, cutting himself off. He felt confusion wash over him as the monk's words registered. "Wait, what?"

"I've got it. I'll give Eimi her space for now, she seems to need it." Kaname relented, knowing that it would be best to give the girl her space for now.

Kaname wasn't the most considerate person when it came to women. Such as fact was obvious in the way he continued to tease Ema, even after she told him not to when she first came to the residence. That being said, he wasn't a fiend. He wasn't going to pursue Eimi on the mere possibility that he _might_ have feelings for her. He didn't even know what it was that drew him to her in the first place. Maybe it was just her looks, or maybe he saw something deeper in those amber orbs that he wanted to discover…

Kaname lost himself in his thoughts as he walked out of the room to a growl of, _"What do you mean 'for now, you bastard?!"_

* * *

"Kasai-ch-"

"Go away Ema." Kasai snapped at her sister from behind the door.

Ema wasn't entirely sure what to do next. For one thing, both Sakura and Eimi had let her in easily and for another, Kasai had _never_ snapped at her. In fact, Eizaki was the only one in their family that Kasai had snapped at and she suspected that stemmed back to how Eizaki acted when she was first adopted. The fact that Kasai was snapping at her now only served to make Ema more concerned for her only younger sister.

"Are you okay?" Ema pressed on,

"Just peachy." Kasai drawled out the snarky comment, still not bothering to come to the door.

Ema frowned. This kind of behavior was never directed at her and she suspected Kasai was just doing it to drive her away. Even so, she felt like Kasai was the one ending up hurt. Her sister may act like nothing could touch her, but Kasai loved her sibling dearly and didn't want to cause them any harm.

"Can you let me in?"

"Why can't you just talk through the door?" Kasai questioned flatly.

Ema was annoyed at this point, not with her sister's words, but with her sister's current self-destructive attitude. It was this annoyance that gave her the courage to boldly open the door on her own, though she was mildly surprised to find it unlocked.

"What are you doing?!" Kasai questioned harshly.

Kasai may have sounded tough, but her face was streaked with tears and the irritated red skin around her eyes and nose told Ema that those tears had been falling for a while. She even had a pillow hugged to her chest like a defensive child. Kasai didn't lose all of her fierce demeanor though because when she looked up Ema caught sight of her sister's menacing glare.

"Can you tell me what's going on?" Ema asked.

As if snapped out of a trance, Kasai's eyes widened, dropping her previous glaring expression entirely. Then, her eyebrows furrowed in thought.

 _'What_ is _going on?'_ Kasai questioned herself.

Kasai was silent for a moment before speaking with a kind of revelation in her tone,"I'm being bitter, and unreasonable, and a total bitch..." Kasai sighed heavily, looking back up at her sister with a guilty cringe. "Sorry, Ema."

Ema was just glad her sister had cooled down before she said even more things she would regret. The amount of guilt in her sister's expression was already enough to make Ema feel guilty herself.

"So," Ema tried again to get to the root of the problem as she sat down beside Kasai. "what _is_ wrong?"

"Well..." Kasai bit her lip apprehensively before sighing in defeat and speaking, "Ididn'twantanyonetoknowaboutmyworkandthenHikarufoundoutandInearlyranintoFuutoandthenHikarualmostspilledthebeansandthenhetotallyinvadedmypersonalspaceandIthinkImightbetheteensyistbitattractedtohimandmytraumacamebackandican'tseemtosleep!" Her sentence- or was it several sentences?- came out in one big rant that was hard to decipher. After it, Kasai gasped for air.

Ema blinked at her sister, trying to piece the monstrosity of a confession. When she did, her eyes widened.

"What?!" Ema shouted in surprise. "Hikaru invaded- and you're attracted to- and trauma- you haven't even slept?!" Ema spluttered before ending in a single coherent thought.

"Yes, only a little, I'll explain, and no." Kasai answered all of the half-formed questions, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly. She was actually happy to have all of it off her chest, though, she surprised even herself by saying she was attracted to Hikaru.

Although, it wasn't like being attracted to him was unreasonable. Hikaru was almost unfairly attractive- as a woman or a man, which worked for Kasai. He shared her profession and the characteristics that came along with it. He had also taken her by surprise with the stunt he pulled, so it was possible that Kasai was even a little bit confused at the moment. Kasai sighed, relieved by her own reasoning.

"Trauma?" Ema asked, some of the shock from Kasai's revelation(s) still apparent on her face.

Kasai stared at her elder sister, silent for a moment. She'd had the inner debate with herself a thousand times. To tell or not to tell, for that is the question. Every time, she had ended up on the latter, but could she really stand to hide it forever. Right now she just wanted to spill all of it out in the open, and she was too tired to resist.

"When I was young," Kasai began to speak, coughing lightly to clear the lump that had formed in her throat. "a guy-" Kasai fought the sick feeling that snuck up on her as she recalled the particular person, "he tried to..." Kasai opened and closed her mouth as she tried to say the words aloud, but she couldn't. They felt taboo, they felt embarrassing, they made her feel _weak_. Kasai steered away from them quickly, "I got away, and that was when Rintaro found me."

Ema could tell that her sister wasn't telling her everything. It was more than just those two missing words. Ema had lived with Kasai long enough to know when she was sparing her some of the details, but it was progress.

Ema hugged her younger sister and let her cry out the tears that had gathered in her eyes.

* * *

Eizaki already had a pretty good hunch about who had made Kasai so upset. Needless to say that when he found out that he had to interrogate said person over the phone, he was anything but pleased.

"Hikaru." Eizaki growled into the phone.

Part of him really wished he could see the bastard face to face so he could yell at him in person, but another part of him knew he would likely get in less words and more punches if that were the case.

 **"Yes?~"** Hikaru asked in an innocent- and deliberately annoying- tone.

"Don't _'yes?~'_ me you bastard! What did you do to my sister?"

 **"Which one are you asking me about?~"**

Eizaki gritted his teeth in frustration. He didn't have time for this. Kasai was hiding out in her room, eating less than she did midway through a novel and possibly crying because of this uncooperative jerk.

"Kasai." Eizaki gritted out in compliance.

 **"Look,"** Hikaru's suddenly serious tone surprised Eizaki. **"you can help your other sisters but what's happening with Kasai is her problem to deal with, you need to let her do it on her own."**

Eizaki stilled at Hikaru's words.

 **"Bye now~!"** Ah, yes, cheery Hikaru was back.

Eizaki listened to the beeping on the other end of the line that signaled the end of the call and let the reality of it all settle in. Eizaki loved all of his sister and worried for all of them more than he worried for himself. Kasai worried him even more.

Maybe it was the way she looked when she showed up in his life a few years ago- broken and battered. Maybe it was because she reminded him of when Eimi was younger. Maybe it was just because she was the youngest. Or Maybe it was because she was _Kasai,_ naturally hot-headed and always getting into trouble- if anyone needed guidance it was her.

Yet, here he was, helpless to help her.

It brought up memories, terrible ones. Terrible, terrible memories of Eimi with bruises and dulled eyes and him- unable to do anything about. If Eizaki was then what he was now...Eizaki shook his head. That was enough thinking about the past for one day.

* * *

 **Lots of stuff happened in this chapter. This is where the hurt/comfort genre comes in.**

 **Review?**


	7. Chapter 7 This is Halloween

**Chapter 7 This Is Halloween**

A month passed without further incident. Although, Eizaki suspected that it was mostly due to the disastrous consequences of before that the brothers were keeping their space. Still, he knew- feared, feared greatly and with additional rage- that the brothers were only biding their time. They were just biding their time before they would strike like the beasts they were.

Anyway, things had been relatively peaceful...

"Noooooo!" Kasai shouted in despair, drawing Eizaki over to her in a panic.

"What?! What is it?!" Eizaki yelped, looking for any possible injuries or brothers nearby.

Kasai, deciding to be a ridiculous drama queen, actually went as far as to go down on her knees, through her arms up and look skyward. That was when Eizaki began to suspect the problem wasn't all that serious. Her next words confirmed it to him.

"My manager wants me to do a talk show!" Kasai shouted in a panic.

"What?" Eizaki sighed, pressing his thumb and pointer finger to his temples to calm the headache his youngest sister seemed determined to cause him so early in the day… "That's all?"

"A TALK SHOW!" Kasai spat out in disgust, like those two words were just the most offensive things she had ever heard. "I don't _do_ TALK SHOWS!"

"What's this about a talk show?"

Kasai and Eizaki whipped around at the appearance of a new voice...and were met with the stylish and undeniably pompous figure of a certain idol.

"Oh, nothing." Kasai waved her hand dismissively, determined to make him lose interest and leave the room as soon as possibly possible for the sake of what was left of her sanity.

"You really must be an idiot if you think I'll believe that." Fuuto sneered.

Of course he didn't take that explanation. Eizaki prepared himself for yet another headache as the idol brat looked down on his sister- not that it was uncommon, Kasai was a shortie- and stayed in place, waiting for a better explanation. Eizaki hoped Fuuto wasn't getting _interested_ in his sister. A stuck-up brat he could handle- Kasai was living proof- but a stuck-up brat who was interested in his little sister...

"It's..." Kasai searched for some explanation as Eizaki's glare on the idol grew deadly.

 _'Let's see, who else can I say this is about...'_

"Eizaki."

"What?!" Eizaki shouted, snapping out of his glaring to face his sister. No. She was not dragging him into her manipulations. No way.

"No need to be shy, bro." Kasai grinned as Eizaki aimed his glare at _her_. "Yep, I talked Eizaki and Eimi into doing a talk show." Kasai continued to lie.

Eizaki gave her a look that clearly said, 'We'll talk about this later'. Fuuto gave her one last suspicious glance before huffing arrogantly and walking away, leaving Kasai to be scolded by Eizaki.

"It's not good to lie."

"It's not a lie." Kasai countered, pulling out her phone.

"What do you mean it's not-"

Eizaki was cut off when Kasai pulled out her phone and speed dialed her manager. He watched suspiciously, a sinking feeling in his chest.

"What are you doing?"

Kasai held up a finger in the silent motion 'hold on a second'.

"Hello, Dillon, you'll never believe this-"

"Kasai?!" Eizaki whispered anxiously but was ignored.

"-you know the two who were popular in the musical world in Europe but never accepted a contract?"

 **"Yeah."** Dillon answered, his skeptical tone projecting over the phone.

"Well, I know them and convinced them to go on the talk show with me."

 **"Really?!"** Dillon asked with obvious delight that Kasai rolled her eyes at.

"Yeah, so is it alright?"

 **"Of course! It's a Halloween special, so they're hoping to gather lots of celebrities from different professions."** Dillon informed her and Kasai hummed halfheartedly.

"Alright, thanks, bye." Kasai hung up the phone.

Not even a second after, Eizaki's freaked out voice rang through the room at a nearly deafening volume.

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!"

"Because I hate talk shows." Kasai offered, gaining an irritated glare from Eizaki in return. "...And it would be better with you guys there." Kasai finished sheepishly- as sheepish as she could be. Eizaki calmed down and ruffled her hair affectionately, Kasai wrinkled her nose in distaste, but didn't push him off.

"Alright, fine. Just don't do that ever again."

"Yes, sir." Kasai mock saluted and Eizaki smiled at her.

Eizaki then went to break the news to Eimi and she actually took it fairly well. He had thought she wanted to abandon everything to do with her career in singing, but...now, he believed it was the opposite. Eimi's eyes sparked when he mentioned their time in Europe.

A part of him wanted to tell her she should start singing again, but a part of him knew she wouldn't be able to handle it if he did, so Eizaki remained silent.

* * *

 **October 31st, Halloween**

Kasai was less than pleased to see what she would be wearing during the talk show in honor of the holiday.

"What is that?" Kasai scrunched up her nose at the monstrosity in front of her.

"It's a dress." The woman who was supposed to help her with her hair and makeup said in a hesitant tone, her lips slipping into a frown at the possibility of dealing with yet another finicky celebrity.

"And what are those?" Kasai pointed at the item like it was covered in blood.

They might as well have been, the sparkles were just as bad in her mind. Where others saw cheer and innocence, she saw blood and guts. Specifically, the blood and guts of her manager, if he really did intend for her to wear that.

"They're fairy wings."

"And those." Kasai grounded her teeth.

Surely, they weren't what she thought they were. No, Dillon was smart enough to know that she would never wear _those_ in a million years. Especially not for some stupid talk show she was roped into because she had been adamant about avoiding her bratty step-brother.

"High heels." The woman said, now seriously worried about the girl before her. Was she crazy, or just a particularly finicky writer?

"Dillon!" Kasai shouted in anger.

She was sure he was near, anticipating her bad reaction to the horrible combination of girly fashion and sparkles she was being forced to wear. The makeup artist flinched at her reaction. At this point, the woman was convinced she wasn't getting paid enough for this job. Would it be unprofessional to bolt from the room?

"Get your ass in here!"

"Yes, sweet Kasai?" Dillon asked innocently.

Innocent, her ass. He knew exactly what she was yelling about at the top of her lungs. Even if he hadn't, it would have been made obvious the second he walked in the room. Kasai wouldn't exactly _willingly_ stand next to such a monstrosity of an outfit.

"Don't you 'sweet Kasai' me! Why in the hell are you making me wear-" Kasai pointed angrily at the costume. It wasn't necessary, as the sparkles reflected the room's light like stars...or fire from the deepest pits of hell, if you were to ask Kasai, "-that?!"

"Because it's a talk show, it's Halloween, and..." Dillon watched Kasai's glare grow fiercer as he listed off reasons and thought it best to make a quick escape. "You can take it up with the agency."

Dillon spoke those words calmly, but as quickly as he could before leaving the room at a speed just barely slower than what would be unprofessional. Kasai stared after him for a moment with gritted teeth, then turned back around. The make-up artist flinched as she caught her gaze and Kasai was sure the woman thought her insane at that point. Kasai scrunched her brows up and stood silently for a while before letting out an almost pained sigh.

"Alright, I'll wear it." The woman was visibly relieved. Kasai was just glad that Dillon had the sense to include fingerless gloves in her outfit, even if they _were_ covered in shimmering designs.

' _At least this can't get any worse.'_

Right?

* * *

Sakura was used to dressing up. Being a model, it was literally in her job description, so having to dress up as a demon wasn't a huge feat for her. In all honesty... she was just thankful it wasn't a slutty costume, as was the usual association with model in a devil costume.

It was actually tasteful and pretty- not at all something she minded wearing. The horns were clips, the dress wasn't particularly tight and flowed down to almost her knees, the wings weren't flimsy, and the heeled boots she wore were only two inches. Sure, red wasn't her favorite color, but she didn't have any complaints.

As Sakura made her way to the waiting area before the show began, she bumped into someone.

"Sor-" Sakura looked up and froze. Eyes exactly the same as her own stared back at her with the same shocked expression. Sakura didn't even think as she breathed out a word almost inaudibly, "Dad?"

The boy she bumped into didn't hear her. Sakura shook her head at herself. This kid was younger than her by at least a couple years. There was no way in hell- ignoring the pun- he could be her father. Still...the three times she had seen her father's picture...this kid looked a heck of a lot like him, and the eyes matched her own perfectly.

"Sorry." Both Sakura and the boy apologized, giving each other one last curious look before continuing on their ways.

Sakura put a hand over her hair, where the eye that used to match her other one in a deep purple, was under.

She looked exactly like her mom, except for those eyes. There was no other trait she shared with her biological father, as far as she knew. It couldn't just be a coincidence, could it?

' _What else could it be?'_

"Oof." Sakura grunted, having bumped into yet another person.

"Watch it!" Said person exclaimed angrily, a far cry from the shocked-polite boy from moments ago.

Sakura looked down slightly, as the person was about an inch or two shorter than herself. Her one purple eye met with the caramel ones of one Fuuto Asahina. He looked suitably pissed for a haughty idol who had just been bumped into, but what was he doing there?

"Fuuto...Asahina-kun?" Sakura questioned incredulously.

This had to be some bizarre hallucination, otherwise she had a feeling the evening was going to get complicated. Unfortunately, when Fuuto looked up he looked equally confused.

"Sakura." It was said, not questioned.

The lack of honorific made Sakura slightly irritated. She could understand the use of her first name. Even if they weren't family, it would just be confusing with all of the Hinatas around. Still, she felt that some respect was due, considering she was- at least legally- his older sister and- literally- his elder in general. Of course, it was really the sneer on his face that made Sakura snap.

"Respect your elders you little twit." Sakura flicked Fuuto's forehead, causing him to flinch back and hold his head.

"Hey!"

Of course, she was at least polite enough to make sure it wouldn't leave a mark. Marking the face of anyone in a position similar to hers, where looks were especially important, wasn't something she was inclined to do.

"Careful." Sakura mocked, secretly checking to see how severe the red mark on his forehead was. To her relief, it was already fading. "You don't want me going around and telling everyone I'm your nee-chan, now do you?"

Fuuto's expression showed no change, but his face blanched slightly. Sakura had to commend him for that. That level of acting ability was something to respect, although she wouldn't want to inflate his already bloated ego by praising him.

"Whatever." Fuuto clicked his tongue at her before walking away.

Sakura had a feeling that there was more to this talk show than Arina had bothered to tell her. Well, it hadn't been the first time her manager had done something like this.

' _I wonder if it's some kind of Halloween special…'_

Sakura continued on her way to the waiting area, assuring herself that whatever Arina had kept from her would have little effect.

Right?

* * *

"Eizaki nii-san?" Eimi suddenly spoke.

"Yeah, Eimi?"

"I think I just saw Azusa-san."

"You must be imagining things." Eizaki assured his twin, but there was a nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach.

 _'There's no way.'_

Right?

* * *

When Kasai got to the kind of waiting room backstage she was surprised to see Sakura, frozen in place. To Sakura's left were Eimi and Eizaki who were in the same state.

"Hey, what are you-"

Kasai cut herself off, seeing the answer to her question right ahead. Right in front of them were four very familiar faces sitting on the couch. Kasai froze in place with an expression of mild horror.

Four persons by the family name of Asahina were looking over at her and her siblings. She stood frozen as she observed four faces she absolutely did _not_ want to see today. Tsubaki, Azusa, Hikaru, and-

"'Nothing special' you say." Fuuto smirked at the stunned Kasai.

That was all it took for her to return to her usual temperament. "Whatever, you phony idol."

Before Fuuto could make a- likely rude- retort, they were all called to the stage. Neither Kasai or Fuuto seemed very happy to cut their argument short. (Sakura secretly hoped their animosity wouldn't carry over on stage while Hikaru prepared himself for an interesting interview.)

Their first sight was a pretty woman with very bright lipstick and flat ironed brown hair, smiling into the camera as she spoke with _far_ too much enthusiasm. Although, maybe Kasai was just being biased.

"In honor of Halloween, a holiday that has wormed its way into our hearts, our pockets, _and_ our media," All nine stars waited behind the curtain, wondering why they had agreed to this...or maybe that was just Kasai. "Please welcome some special guests of ours from all different sides of stardom." The curtain rose in dramatic fashion to reveal said stars of different professions.

"Keichii Hanaka," They all looked to the guy on the far left, who had the same eyes as Sakura. His hair was messy and brown while his skin was tan, and he seemed to share no resemblance to the dark-haired model except for those eyes. The dark black robe, gray wings, dark eyeliner, and scythe in his hands made it easy to identify his costume as the Angel of Death. _"Well that's foreboding."_ Sakura mumbled.

"Eimi and Eizaki Taiyo," Eimi smiled brightly and Eizaki waved. Eimi was sporting a pair of white cat ears clipped to her pig-tail styled hair that was left curly, elbow-length white fingerless gloves with pink paws on her palms, a puffy, above the knee-length white dress with a white cat tail pinned to the back, a fur vest, and white slipper-boots. Eizaki similarly had cat ears, a tail, and a fur vest, but all were in black. Other than that, he wore simple black jeans, a black t-shirt, and black boots.

"Fuuto Asakura," Fuuto gave a phony smile- or phony to all those on stage at least, save the host and maybe Keichii. Fuuto was dressed like a king...literally. He had on an extravagant crown, a red velvet cape lined with fur, and a gold-embellished navy suit-type outfit with white and gold boots. _"Arrogant."_ Kasai scoffed and Fuuto smirked over at her.

"Tsubaki and Azusa Asahina," The only people who don't have to use a fake last name- save maybe Keichii- both smiled and waved, although Tsubaki's was more of a grin. The pair of twins seemed to have chosen to dress as rabbits, shown by the fluffy pinned tails and bunny ears atop each head- white for Tsubaki and black for Azusa. Other than that, their outfits were normal, if a bit whimsical, and in keeping with their normal color schemes. _"Cats and rabbits."_ Eimi giggled and Azusa smiled over at her.

"Sakura Umiko," Keichii looked to Sakura is surprise and Sakura glanced over to him, a curious look on her face before dismissing it. Instead, she smiled and gave a small wave, red painted nails catching the light.

"Hikaru Asakawa," Hikaru flashed a quick grin over at Kasai before smiling and waving and said girl cursed fate for doing this to her. He was dressed as a jester, wearing red pants and a black shirt with a long black and red checker-patterned vest over the top along with pointed black boots, a red and black jester hat, and a black diamond drawn over one eye. Kasai rolled her eyes and muttered, _"How appropriate."_ Hikaru shot her a wink in response.

"and Kasai Taeru." Kasai mentally cursed as Hikaru looked over to her as if he had found out her greatest secret. Kasai knew exactly why too. Her stage name held a bit of information easily overlooked if you didn't know her personally and if you weren't perceptive enough to see anything more than just a stage name. Unluckily for her, Hikaru was _very_ aware of her and _very_ perceptive. Taeru. To withstand. Kasai thought it appropriate, considering how much she had to go through to be where she was today.

She met Hikaru's eyes challengingly, raising her chin as if to say, 'So what?'.

"Come take a seat." The host smiled brightly at them.

There were two couches- plush, red, and flashy enough to make at least Kasai cringe mentally. Unfortunately, since they couldn't be obvious about who they didn't want to be near, the stars took the most practical seats, trying to act natural. So, the seating arrangements ended up ever-so-slightly awkward.

On the first couch, from left to right, was Eimi, Azusa, Tsubaki, Sakura, and Keichii. On the other couch sat Fuuto, Kasai, Hikaru, and Eizaki.

Azusa and Eimi sat together uncomfortably, trying to ignore the tension between more hostile pairings- namely Sakura with Tsubaki, and the trio that was Fuuto, Kasai, and Hikaru. There was also the way Keichii eyed Sakura intensely. Of course, the glaring Eizaki also couldn't be forgotten, looking ready to snap and kill any of the brothers the second they made a move- if they weren't on live television, that is.

"Doesn't it feel a bit-" Eimi started quietly, a slight nervous squeak in her voice as she looked over to the side.

"Awkward?" Azusa finished for her with a nervous lilt of his own. Eimi and Azusa turned to each other and smiled amusedly at the other before something seemed to spark between them and both quickly turned away, light blushes adorning both of their cheeks.

Tsubaki grinned flirtatiously at Sakura and she responded with a flat look and a flick to the forehead, laughing as Tsubaki cringed. Tsubaki caught Keichii studying Sakura- for what? He didn't exactly know- and glared subtly over at him.

Fuuto was leaning just a bit close to the blonde at his side, just enough to make Kasai twitch in discomfort and remind herself that she still had to avoid leaning to the other side where Hikaru was flashing her his, ''I-know-all-of-your-darkest-secrets' smile. Kasai was, for once in what seemed like her entire life, lacking in any hot-headed comments and instead seemed like she was trying to disappear into the couch.

Eizaki seemed like he was trying to glare to death all of the other males who were present.

"Ah..." The talk show host started awkwardly, sensing the tension in the air, as thick as honey. "Well," She began, trying to ignore it and seemingly succeeding, "let's start with Sakura-chan! You and Tsubaki-san recently had a photoshoot together. Now, after seeing those photos," Sakura looked up with dread and Tsubaki's grin returned, "we were all wondering, are you two dating?"

"No."

"Yes~!"

*smack*

"Azusa~!" Tsubaki whined at his twin.

"If he didn't hit you, I would have." Sakura stated seriously.

"So mean, Sakura-chan~!" Tsubaki pouted at her.

"Ok," The talk show host continued, seemingly taken aback by the sheer familiarity between the guests (if only she knew), "but the kiss," Sakura and Tsubaki turned their attention back to her as the woman smiled, "that looked pretty real to me."

Tsubaki grinned cheekily at the midnight-haired model and Sakura's cheeks flushed crimson.

"I-it was just part of the photo sh-shoot!" Sakura waved her arms in front of her defensively, surprising herself for stuttering at all, but taken aback by the line of questioning.

' _What the hell kind of talk show_ is _this?'_

Sakura had lost her trademark composure and was now stuttering and blushing, unwittingly portraying a very cute side usually covered by her professional persona. Although, Tsubaki seemed to decide that just wasn't good enough, if one were to go by his next actions.

"That good, huh~? Should I try it again~?" Tsubaki teased. Sakura's entire face went red and she squirmed uncomfortably on the couch.

"Tsu-baka!" She snapped at him and brought a hand up to her face in vain attempt to cover what wasn't already concealed by her hair.

"You're such a tsundere, Sakura-chan~."

* * *

All of the Asahina family had decided to watch television in the living room as a family. Save, of course for those who were out currently. Natsume, surprisingly, was included in that count of those who were there. He had actually just come to drop off more game demos for Ema and was dragged into watching with them by a cheerful Wataru, and a small, encouraging smile from Ema.

The television was turned on. All the siblings present sat down on the couch. The channels were flipped until...

No one even seemed to react as Ukyo's teacup smashed against the ground, the glass shards spreading out- harmlessly, thank kami- over the ground. All eyes stayed fixated on the television with a range of different expressions between them.

"Oh, no." Ema mumbled troubledly.

It was an awkward picture- delightfully awkward to some, uncomfortably and/or irritable awkward to others- and it only got more and more awkward as the show went on. Sakura was blushing a thousand shades of red from Tsubaki's comments- probably boosting the show's ratings tremendously, although he obviously had a different goal in mind. Kaname was glaring at the screen as he watched the interactions between Azusa and Eimi. The rest of the present members of the Asahina-Hinata clan, however, were watching the show intently. Strangely enough, Natsume couldn't find the will to take his eyes off Sakura.

* * *

"Hmm," The talk show host hummed curiously, obviously thinking up more embarrassing and/or revealing questions to ask the special guests. Kasai was personally dreading her turn for questioning, but the woman had other targets currently. "Eimi-chan, are you really nineteen?"

"Yes." Eimi stated decisively before mumbling under her breath, "Everyone always asks that." Azusa glanced down at her from beside her and flushed just a bit at the cute pouting expression she was unwittingly making.

"And you and your brother really never accepted a contract?"

"We didn't." Eizaki answered in his sister's stead, giving a charming smile.

The host blushed over the enchanting expression, brown eyes turning round in admiration and wonder before stuttering out, "W-well," All of the sister's collectively rolled their eyes at the typical reaction to Eizaki's charm. _'Thank god he doesn't play around anymore.'_ All of the sisters blew out silent sighs of relief.

Finally, the woman seemed to shake herself out of the effect of Eizaki's smile enough to ask, "Why didn't you accept a contract?"

"I..." Eizaki glanced over to Eimi, who seemed to be trying to keep a smile on her face while her eyes were downcast. "I only really play backup for Eimi and, that's really the only reason I did it in the first place."

"Ah, and you Eimi-chan?"

The change in Eimi's demeanor went unnoticed by most- including Keichii, who was busy watching Sakura, and the talk show host-, but most of those sitting on the couches could see the shift. Eimi's eyes stayed downcast, even as her cheerful smile (fake) stayed on her face. Her heart clenched. _'Because it made me happy, and after all the trouble I've caused, I don't deserve to be happy.'_

"My lungs couldn't take it." Eimi's eyes rose back up and she put a bit more force into her smile, beaming.

"Well, that's too bad." The host acknowledged, smiling back, before glancing over at the other couch. "Now, Fuuto-kun, it's time for a fun question!" The more cautious of the quests blanched at the eager look on the woman's face, while Fuuto smirked in preparation. "If you could date any one of these three fine woman," The talk show host waved her hand to indicate Sakura, Eimi, and Kasai with a beaming smile, although she didn't even get to finish the question before Fuuto answered.

"Kasai-chan."

Even noticing the obviously fake smile attached to words he'd just spoken, Kasai nearly fell over out of her seat in shock. "Wh-what?!" She stuttered.

' _What the hell are you trying to pull, you prick?!'_

"You're that surprised? Is it so hard to believe?" Fuuto questioned as if he were concerned with her self-esteem, all the while leaning in close to Kasai.

 _'He's just acting, he's just acting-holy fuck, he's close!'_ This time, Kasai really did fall off the couch. Unfortunately, when she fell to the ground her dress rode up a bit, leaving her long, tanned legs were in full view of both the camera and all her fellow talk show guests. Kasai quickly realized her position and immediately got up and slipped back into her seat, staring hard at her lap as she flushed and desperately tried to forget her embarrassment.

"Ah..."The talk show host muttered awkwardly before pasting back on her smile and moving on. "So, Kasai-chan and Hikaru-san, I heard you both recently met. What were your first opinions of each other?"

Kasai, mostly over her initial embarrassment, deadpanned, "Sneaky."

"Childish~." Hikaru teased back.

Kasai glared over at the redhead and Hikaru grinned back slyly.

"Heh," The talk show host laughed awkwardly before glancing over at the other couch again. "So then, Keichii, how does being Kyo Hanaka's son feel?"

Sakura flinched and froze from beside him, the name echoing in her head. _'Kyo Hanaka.'_

"Ha ha, I guess I was kind of born into fame, huh? It's okay, but right now, I'm looking for my sister." Keichii's voice became serious as he spoke the last sentence and he glanced subtly over at Sakura, who was growing increasingly uncomfortable.

"Oh, really? Oops, looks like our time is up. It was nice meeting you all," The talk show host looked curious and a little let down, but she kept her smile as she turned to face the camera and, with a wave, said, "and I hope all enjoyed this, happy Halloween!"

* * *

After changing out of her costume, Sakura found herself outside, waiting for her cab to come pick her up and bring her home- where she would, ironically enough, reunite with most of the people she'd just been on stage with. Sakura tilted her head back to look up at the evening sky as she tried to come to terms with all that had happened today.

A name repeated in her head.

' _Kyo Hanaka.'_

"The way you reacted."

Sakura startled and quickly turned her head to see Keichii standing to the side an apprehensive look on his face. Although, it wasn't just apprehensiveness. There was a mixture of emotions on his face. Worry, hope, disbelief, and wonder…

"You're her, aren't you?" Keichii took a step forward and Sakura felt her heart speed up, panic rushing through her as she stumbled back. "My sister."

* * *

 **Wow, it's been a while. College has kept me busy and to be honest I'm really happy to be writing again!**

 **This chapter ended up _way_ longer than I thought it would, but I have no regrets!**

 **...Except maybe that I realized how much like a soap opera this gets at points.**

 **Fun fact: Originally, Eimi's costume was supposed to be an Angel and for the brothers and Eizaki I hadn't even bothered mentioning their costumes. I was so lazy...**

 **I hope you liked this chapter, please reveiw!**


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